At least 71 people have died after two gas cooking stoves exploded
on a train in Pakistan.
An official from the emergency services said of the 43 people
injured, 11 were still in critical condition.
The ensuing fire destroyed three of the train's carriages as it
approached the town of Liaquatpur in Punjab.
The blaze raged through the train as firefighters struggled to get it
under control
Several of the injured jumped off the train, many to their deaths, after
the fire broke out.
Minister for railways Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said some of the
passengers were trying to prepare breakfast on the stove as the train
was moving, violating railway rules.
He told Geo TV: "Two cooking stoves blew up. They were cooking,
they had [cooking] oil which added fuel to fire."
He added: "Most deaths occurred from people jumping off the train."
Mr Ahmed said that passengers with little money often bring their
own small gas stoves on the trains to cook their meals, despite the
rules.
Media reports suggested that railway officials did not notice
passengers carrying individual gas stoves onto the train. However,
safety regulations are often ignored on overcrowded trains.
TV footage from the scene showed the flames raging through the
train as firefighters struggled to get it under control.
Another train has been dispatched to bring stranded passengers to
the city of Rawalpindi.
People watch as the fire burns uncontrollably
The train was travelling in Pakistan's eastern Punjab province
The critically injured are being taken in ambulances to the city of
Multan, which is the largest city nearest to the site of the accident.
Rescue workers searched the charred wreckage for survivors.
Authorities said they were still trying to identify the victims.
Mr Ahmed said the train had been travelling from the southern port
city of Karachi, the capital of southern Sindh province to the city of
Rawalpindi when the fire broke out.
People and rescue workers gather near the site after the fire was put
out.
Pakistan's military said troops were also participating in the rescue
operation.
President Arif Albi and Prime Minister Imran Khan have issued
statements expressing their grief over the accident.
It is the latest tragedy to hit the country's dilapidated and poorly
maintained rail system. Eleven people were killed in an accident in
July, four in another accident in September.
In 2005, around 130 people were killed when a train rammed into
another at a station in Sindh province, and a third train hit the
wreckage.

https://news.sky.com/story/pakistan-train-fire-kills-at-least-46-after-gas-canister-explodes-11849847

May the good lord grant them eternal rest.

God have mercy